


Wands and Angel Grace

by justanotherbusyfangirl



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling, Supernatural
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-02
Updated: 2017-10-31
Packaged: 2019-09-07 11:22:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 14,423
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16853089
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/justanotherbusyfangirl/pseuds/justanotherbusyfangirl
Summary: When Lucifer leaves our reality for the Wizarding World, Sam and Dean follow him to stop him before he causes too much damage.  Will they be able to blend in at Hogwarts without raising suspicion?  Will they be able to stop Lucifer and Voldemort?  And will the Golden Trio trust the Winchesters, these strangers suddenly thrust into their lives?





	1. Introduction

Lucifer’s leg hung lazily over the arm of his chair, swinging back and forth as he read his book. He was in his latest throne room, the living room of an old mansion he’d taken from its owners in Vermont.  

He liked it there, as the house and furniture in it reminded him of years past.

Demons were in and out of the room, keeping his drink and table full of his favorite things, bringing him a human every now and then to play with.  It was all well and good, as he was on what he liked to think of as a vacation.

In fact, he had spent the past few days reading, wanting to be knowledgeable of the most popular books of the time.

He’d recently found the Harry Potter series and was nearly finished.  

“You know,” Lucifer said to the room, knowing that his demons would be listening to every word without having to look up.  “Each and every book written in the history of time is tied to an alternate dimension, did you know that?”

He looked up, seeing a demon girl kneeling before him, having just filled his wine.  She shook her head nervously, not meeting his eyes.

“I didn’t realize, my lord,” she replied, bowing her head further.

“It’s true,” Lucifer said, reaching out to curl his finger into a bit of her hair, playing with it some as he continued to speak.  “Every story written down is woven into the very universe, which means that you can actually live in your favorite worlds that you read about.”

Lucifer closed the seventh  _Harry Potter_  book in his hands, thumb caressing the cover.  “Have you read these books, dearest?” he asked the demon, a finger under her chin encouraging her to look up and answer.

She shook her head, nervous. “No, I’m afraid I have not, my lord.”

“Huh,” he replied, letting her face go.  “You should – this Rowling woman has quite an imagination.  I just could jump into the world she’s created…”

Lucifer let his thought hang in the air, mulling over it for a minute.  “This character – Tom Riddle – that she’s created…I do believe he and I would get along splendidly.”

Lucifer jumped up, startling the demon and making her spill his wine.  “I’m so sorry…I’m so sorry,” she whispered, cleaning the spill immediately.

“Don’t worry, love,” Lucifer said as he walked by her, sending the book flying across the room to land on a table while his right pointer finger spun in circles in front of him, making the doorway on the opposite side of the room turn hazy as he got closer.  “It might be a while before I’m back.”

Just as Lucifer got to the door it flashed a bright gold, a circular vortex forming in the frame.

“Don’t go messing up my kingdom,” he shouted over his shoulder before walking into the chaos, vortex disappearing once he was through it, Lucifer’s form disappearing with it.


	2. Chapter One

The boys had just gotten back to the bunker the day before, just finished up with a grueling hunt for a nest of vampires.  There had been twice as many vamps as they’d expected, and they were very much ready for a rest.

Castiel met them at the bunker when they’d gotten home, healing them of their injuries immediately upon arrival.  Dean would never admit it, but he was more than grateful that the angel was around so that he didn’t have to wait two weeks for his cuts and bruises to heal, making it easier to go from one hunt to another.

That being said, the three of them weren’t looking for the next hunt, but instead were relaxing in the map room, sipping on beer and enjoying the peace and quiet.  It wasn’t often that they were able to just sit, so it was a nice change of pace.

The quiet didn’t last as long as they hoped, however, as Castiel stood up all of a sudden, clutching his head and groaning.

“Cas,” Dean responded immediately, standing and moving toward the angel.  Sam got to Castiel’s other side, and the Winchesters helped steady Castiel back into his chair.

“Ungh…” Castiel moaned, his face scrunched up in either pain or concentration, the boys couldn’t tell which.

“What’s wrong, Cas?” Sam asked, kneeling next to the angel.  He and Dean met eyes, completely unsure of what to do.

“Something…” Castiel started to speak, but he interrupted himself by throwing his head back and looking toward the heavens, eyes wide and looking shocked.  Sam gulped in nervousness.  “Something is wrong.”

Those words are not ones that the boys wanted to hear coming from their friend, and they both grabbed their seats and pulled them close to Castiel, sitting back down as the angel composed himself.  Finally Castiel’s hands rested back on the table, relaxed and normal once more.

“Dude,  _what_ is wrong?” Dean asked, tone of voice not one that allowed for any hiding of the truth.

“There was a…” Castiel was searching for the correct word.  “Rip… In the world.”  Sam and Dean shared a worried look.  “Someone…an angel…has left our universe.”

Castiel closed his eyes, concentrating.  Sam didn’t let the silence lapse.  “What do you mean, ‘left our universe’?”

Castiel was quiet for another moment before opening his eyes.  “Lucifer.  He transported himself to a different universe from ours.  He’s no longer here.”

Sam’s brow furrowed, trying to understand what Castiel was trying to say, while Dean’s face broke out into a grin.  “No more Lucifer?” he asked, obvious excitement in his voice.  “That’s awesome, right?”

Dean looked between Sam and Castiel, seeing that neither of them were as excited about the thought of a world with no Lucifer as he was.  “Right?” Dean repeated, hoping that they’d agree.

“I do not believe it is awesome, Dean,” Castiel responded, standing and beginning to pace slowly behind his chair.  “Lucifer wouldn’t just go to another universe for nothing.  He’s planning something, he’s up to something.”

Castiel stopped his pacing and looked to the brothers.  “We have to stop him.”

* * *

Castiel had gotten up and gone to rummage through the store rooms of the bunker, muttering to himself about performing some sort of spell.  Meanwhile, Sam and Dean were still somewhat shocked to find out that there were alternate universes, let alone that Lucifer had transported himself to one of those other universes.

Not too long passed before Castiel was back, laying different ingredients out onto the table.

“What’s up, Cas?” Sam asked, standing and moving to help him.  He looked over all of the things Castiel had laid out, mind whirring to figure out what Castiel was doing.

“There’s a spell that will let us know what universe Lucifer has transported himself to, that way we can go after him,” Castiel responded, beginning to mix things into a large wooden bowl in front of him.  

Dean scoffed from where he was still sitting.  “Why do we care, though?” he asked, letting his head hang back over the chair, eyes staring at the ceiling above him.  “He’s not bothering us anymore, right?”

Castiel glanced at Dean before rolling his eyes and responding.  “But you must understand, Dean, each universe is balanced.  With Lucifer moving from this universe to another, he has put off the balance of our two universes.  That could cause drastic problems.”

Sam nodded, completely understanding Castiel’s point.  He also felt absolutely horrible that someone else was now having to deal with Lucifer, someone who had no idea what they were getting themselves into.

“Nearly done…” Castiel mumbled as he bit his bottom lip, concentrating on the last few pinches of ingredients before closing his eyes, allowing his grace to form between his hands. The brothers watched as Castiel carefully pushed a tiny ball of grace into the bowl, making the contents blow a bright, light blue.

Castiel opened his eyes, looking into the light.  Sam leaned forward just a bit to get a better look, and even Dean stepped forward to see. All the brothers could see was a movement of figures and shapes in the brightness, but obviously Castiel could see much more.  The longer he watched, the more his brow furrowed.

“Why-?” he asked aloud, interrupting his own question to lean closer to the bowl.  Sam and Dean shared a look, worried that Castiel was so taken aback by what he was seeing.

“Where is he, Cas?” Dean finally asked, voice soft as he came to stand by the angel.  Castiel took another long moment of watching the bowl before finally stepping back, hand waving above the spell and causing the light to diminish.

Castiel sighed, a heavy sound that made Dean’s gut wrench, and not in a good way.  “Let’s sit,” Castiel suggested, motioning to the library.

Hesitantly, Sam and Dean found chairs and watched as Castiel began to pace.  “To go back to the beginning – our universe is not the only one,” he began, ignoring the quiet ‘ _Obviously’_  that Dean mumbled.  “There are an infinite number of universes, both parallel and far away from ours. Many universes stem from this one, in fact, through the creative minds that we can find here on Earth.”

Sam turned his body toward Castiel, asking, “What do you mean, ‘stem from this one’?”

Castiel nodded, expecting Sam’s question.  “When humans were created long ago, they were granted Free Will.  With that Free Will, humans were able to grow creatively, learning to draw, make music, and…write.”

Castiel turned toward the brothers.  “If a human spends enough time and creative energy making a world through writing, and then expresses that world to others who  _also_ spend a lot of time and energy concentrated on that world, it becomes real.”

“You mean humans can create their own universe?” Dean asked skeptically.  “No way, because otherwise I would be living in a place with hot chicks around me constantly – thought about that enough in my lifetime, right?”

Sam rolled his eyes at Dean’s comment, forming his own question.  “So if there’s a book written and enough people read it, that means that universe can be real?”

“Yes, that’s exactly right,” Castiel responded, turning toward the bookshelves behind him.  As he looked through the stacks, Sam continued.

“So, like, J. R. R. Tolkein’s Middle Earth – there’ve been millions of copies of his books printed, people have read them all over the world…Does it exist?”

Castiel looked to Sam, nodding.  “Yes, Middle Earth has become a real place, parallel to our universe.”

Sam sat back in his chair. “Cool,” he breathed, mind whirring as he went through all of the different books he’d read and, from them, what worlds could actually exist.

Castiel finally found what he’d been looking for, pulling a book off the shelf.  He was still somewhat hidden behind the stacks, so Sam and Dean couldn’t see what book he’d grabbed.

“So you’re saying that Lucifer went into some book-world?” Dean asked, not believing it.  “What book would he so want to live in?”

“I can think of a few…” Sam muttered, but he stopped speaking when Castiel came back to the table, laying a book in front of the boys.

_Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone_

“Rowling?” Sam asked, breathless as he picked up the book.

“Ah, what a nerd!” Dean said at the same time, throwing his hands up in frustration.

“Yes. Lucifer has gone to the Wizarding World,” Castiel said solemnly, worried at the possibilities.


	3. Chapter Two

“Dude, you’re loving this,” Dean teased at Sam as the three of them sat there, Castiel regaling to them what he had seen in the bowl during the spell.  He knew that Lucifer had travelled into the realm of Harry Potter, and he knew that it was during the timeframe of a specific book: the sixth one.

“So is he back in 1996, Cas?” Sam asked, still trying to figure out how all of this worked.

“You even know the freaking year?” Dean immediately replied, scoffing at Sam.  “Seriously, bro, you need to get out more.”

“Yes,” Castiel said seriously.  “It seems as though he went back to September of 1996, in the Wizarding World.  We need to get him back here, before he causes damage to that universe.”

Sam nodded, following Castiel’s logic.  “So what do we do?  Can you go get him?”

The boys watched as Castiel mulled over the question.  “I don’t believe it is wise for me to go.  I might not be able to trap Lucifer by myself, and I am unsure of the portals to and from that world…if it requires too much energy I might not be able to get back.”

Sam and Dean looked worried at that idea, so Sam pitched another thought.  “Can you send us?  We can go, find Lucifer, get him back.”

Castiel thought it over. “Yes, I believe I can send the two of you.  We can estimate how long it will take you to track Lucifer down, and I will have that time to get more power to bring you all back.”

Sam nodded, standing up and rubbing his hands together.  “Let’s do this,” he said, trying to hide the excitement in his voice and failing miserably.

“Wait, wait, wait,” Dean said, holding his hand up to stop Sam’s movement.  “We need a plan.  We don’t know where exactly in that world Lucifer is, right?”  Castiel nodded in response.  “So we need a cover.  That world isn’t like ours, so I’m pretty sure our Fed suits and badges aren’t gonna fly there.”

Sam nodded, realizing that Dean brought up a good point.  He thought for a minute before clarifying again: “1996, right?”

Castiel nodded and Dean squinted at Sam, wondering where he was going with asking the same question over again.

“When you transport us there, will we be reverting to ourselves in 1996?  So would I be 13 again?”

Castiel thought it over. “I suppose we could make that happen. It wouldn’t be an automatic change, but re-aging the two of you closer to your real age in 1996 wouldn’t do too much damage to the timeline…”

“Well, could you alter it just a tiny bit?” Sam asked, mind racing with ideas.  “Could you go three years off – make me 16 and Dean 19?  Then you could transport us directly to the school and we could go undercover there.  We could get some help from some…people there…”

“Oh my God, Sammy, you want to go to Hogwarts, don’t you?” Dean teased, standing up.  “What, would your precious little characters be 16 in 1996? How do you even know these things, nerd?”

“Yes, Dean,” Sam scoffed. “It would give us a valid cover, we would have back up from the good guys, and we could use the time and resources we could get at Hogwarts to look for Lucifer and create a plan to take him down.”

Dean was about to say something else before Castiel interrupted.  “I think that’s a good idea, Sam.  Do you think you could talk your way into protection at the school?”

Sam was already nodding. “I know I could.  I just have to spit out some facts from the books and we’d be golden.”

Any more protests from Dean were pushed aside as Castiel stood, motioning for the brothers to stand in front of him.  “16 and 19, you said?” he clarified, reaching a hand out to their foreheads.

“Yeah,” Sam breathed, heart jumping at the thought that he was going to Hogwarts.  How many times in his life had he actually dreamed of this?

Castiel touched them softly and they could feel energy radiating in and around them before all of the air was gone from their lungs.  They both fell to the floor, coughing until they could breathe normally again.

“Are you alright?” Castiel asked them from where he was still standing, and Sam looked up.

“Yeah, m’good,” he responded, eyes widening at the high pitch of his voice.  “Holy crap,” he muttered, looking over at Dean.

19-year-old Dean was looking back at him, just as shocked as Sam was.  “Dude, you’re so paying for this later,” Dean said, his voice also much higher than it had been moments ago.

“Yeah, yeah,” Sam replied as he stood, brushing his now baggy clothes off.  Dean was doing the same.  “We gotta change before we go.”

Castiel nodded, turning back to the table where the bowl for the spell still lay.  “I need a few minutes to prepare the portal.”

Sam and Dean headed to the bunker’s storage room, digging through old boxes and finding some clothes that fit them better.  They pulled on the slacks and button ups (because of course, the Men of Letters didn’t have jeans and t-shirts back in the early twentieth century), ran to the garage to gather a few weapons that they could carry easily, and headed back for the library.

They watched as Castiel finished his preparations, raising his hand toward the doorway leading to the kitchen.  He mumbled some words in Enochian before sending energy toward the door, causing a swirling portal to appear.

When he was satisfied that it was stable, Castiel turned toward the boys.  “I’ll send for you in about six weeks.  That should give you plenty of time.”  They nodded, and Sam noted the time and date on his watch.  “Please be careful.”

Dean patted his jacket in the place where he’d stored his gun, nodding back at Castiel.  “I think we’ll be good, Cas.  See you in six weeks!”

With that, Dean squared his shoulders and walked through the portal.  Sam watched him disappear before giving Castiel a wave and following.

Sam nearly ran into Dean on the other side, his brother frozen in shock at the beautiful, expansive castle in front of them.

Hogwarts.

* * *

Sam couldn’t help it, his stomach turned with excitement as he and Dean walked up the path to the castle. As much as Dean teased him, they both knew how much Sam enjoyed reading the  _Harry Potter_  books and his knowledge of the series was definitely going to be helpful for the next six weeks.

Sam looked over at his brother, in his 19-year-old body, and saw a genuine awe on his face.  Dean may tease Sam, but in the end he knew the elder Winchester would fall in love with this world too – he just needed to live in it for a while.

They finally got to the front doors of the castle, not seeing any students around.  Sam thought it was odd, but figured that classes were probably on going and they were all occupied.  

He reached out to grab the large nob, pulling the door open and hearing the huge hinges creak.  They stepped inside, eyes widening at the view of the portraits that surrounded them.  Dean was shocked to see them moving, painted images whispering to one another about the two strange lads who just walked into their castle.

Sam headed forward, deciding to use the portraits to his advantage.  “Excuse me,” he said to an image of a woman in a field.  “Which way is Professor Dumbledore’s office?”

The woman walked forward, her image growing larger as she did so.  Finally her face was as big as Sam and Dean’s in front of her and she replied. “Who are you?”

The boys looked at one another, unsure of what to say.  Sam decided for them.  “We’re visiting, and we really need to speak to Dumbledore.  Please.”

She studied his face for a minute before nodding.  “Down that hall, then take a right.  You’ll see the statue –“

Sam nodded.  “Of a gargoyle.  I know it.  Thank you.”

Dean looked at Sam like he was crazy, but the portrait calmed a bit when Sam knew what to look for. Waving a goodbye to her, Sam headed down the hallway, Dean in tow.  “You’re seriously a freak, Sammy,” Dean said, rushing to keep up with Sam.

“Yeah, well, my being a ‘freak’ is going to help us a lot here,” Sam replied, turning to the right and looking for the statue.  About twenty steps later, he stopped, turning to see the giant statue in front of him.

Dean nearly ran into Sam but stopped just in time, turning.  “How do we get in?”

Sam sighed, looking at his brother then back at the statue.

“Fizzing whizbees,” he said. Nothing happened.  “Bertie Bott’s.”

“What are you doing?” Dean asked, but Sam ignored him.

“Jelly Slugs. Licorice Wands.  Chocolate Frogs.  Sugar Quills.”

Sam was starting to get frustrated.  He sighed, racking his brain and ignoring his brother.  “Treacle fudge.  Honeydukes Chocolate.  Drooble’s Gum.  Chocolate Cauldrons.”  The candies were coming to mind slower now as Sam thought harder.

“Lemon drops?” he asked, but sighed in relief when the gargoyle began to move.

“Whoa,” Dean jumped back, startled at the movement.  “What the hell?”


	4. Chapter Three

_“Lemon drops?” Sam asked, but sighed in relief when the gargoyle began to move._

“Whoa,” Dean jumped back, startled at the movement.  “What the hell?”

Sam looked at his brother as he stepped forward onto the staircase forming in front of them. “Dumbledore’s password is always some sort of candy – he’s kooky like that.”

“Whatever you say, Sammy,” was all Dean replied as they rode the staircase up until a door appeared.  

Sam lifted his hand to knock before an old voice rang through, “Come in, boys.”

Sam and Dean looked at one another before heading inside.  Sam had to admit, the movies were pretty perfect at replicating the appearance of Dumbledore’s office – or did Dumbledore’s office look this way  _because_  of the movies?  The thought jumbled his brain and he filed it away to ask Castiel about when they got back.

“I don’t believe we’ve had the pleasure of meeting,” Dumbledore said, stepping out from behind his desk to meet the brothers in the middle of the room.  Dean noticed Dumbledore’s wand in his hand, and even though he didn’t know a lot about the Wizarding World, it made him reach for his gun stashed in his jacket.

Sam noticed Dean’s movement and put his hand on Dean’s wrist, stopping him from drawing the gun. “Professor Dumbledore,” Sam said, making Dumbledore’s eyes twinkle at the recognition, “My name is Sam Winchester and this is my brother Dean.  We are from an alternate universe and have come here on a mission.  We need your help.”

Dumbledore studied Sam’s face for a moment before looking to Dean, seeing him still tense and ready to draw his weapon.  They weren’t sure what exactly Dumbledore was thinking, but he seemed to believe Sam’s story as he turned toward his desk.

When he faced them again, he was holding a bowl of candies.  “Lemon drop?” he asked, and Sam grinned.

“Thank you, sir,” he said, reaching for one and popping it in his mouth.  Sam and Dumbledore both looked to Dean who was viewing the old man with skepticism, and it wasn’t until Sam elbowed Dean that he took his own lemon drop.

“Thanks,” Dean mumbled as Dumbledore went back to his chair, motioning the two of them to sit.

“So, young Mister Winchester, tell me about your journey,” Dumbledore said, leaning back in his chair and lacing his fingers together, eager for the tale.

Sam cleared his throat before starting.  “My brother and I are from a different universe.  We didn’t know until recently that there were such things as multiple universes, but we have found the truth out the hard way.  Where we come from, there are many supernatural beings, much like here, and we are hunters who keep them from hurting humans.  Where we come from, the Wizarding World is immortalized in a book series, so I know many things about this world.

“Not only are there monsters in our world, but there are demons and angels, too, and that’s why we’re here.  Lucifer, a very powerful archangel who fell and was the ruler of hell for a long while…he created demons and caused a ruckus before God locked him up, then he got out of his cage and started problems again…”

Sam sighed.  “It’s actually a really long story.  But equate him to Lord Voldemort.”

The name visibly shocked Dumbledore and the old man leaned forward.  “Go on, son.”

“Lucifer opened a portal to another world, this world.  He’s here somewhere.  Another angel friend of ours, Castiel, was able to figure out which world he went to and sent us here to stop him and bring him back.

“Sir, he’s pure evil, and we really don’t want him causing problems for you like he’s caused problems in our universe.  So, we’re here to try and find him to take him home, or defeat him once and for all.”

Sam looked at Dean, seeing his brother’s eye gazing around the room at all of the magical items around. Sam rolled his eyes that Dean had zoned out, but it didn’t surprise him.

“We were hoping that we could make a home base here at the school while we figure out where Lucifer is and how to stop him.  Castiel has de-aged us so that we could blend in a bit better – I’m currently the age of sixth years and Dean is the age of a recent graduate – could we find a place in the castle while we search?”

Sam finally stopped speaking, letting Dumbledore mull over everything he’d said.  Finally he spoke, gaining Dean’s attention again once more.

“I believe you, Mister Winchester.  And I appreciate your heroism for trying to stop this Lucifer.  You may stay, and I will help you.  We’ll need to make a cover story…”

Dumbledore stood and walked over to a cabinet, mumbling to himself as he searched for something.  He pulled out a box, twinkle in his eye as big as daylight.

“Samuel, you will join sixth year here.  Do you care what house?”  
“Gryffindor,” Sam immediately said, blushing at his eagerness.  “Sorry, but I’d love to join Gryffindor.  I think that’s where I’ll be able to work the best, even though Ravenclaw would probably suit me as well…”

Sam let his words trail off, hoping that Dumbledore didn’t realize that he wanted to be sorted into Gryffindor because he wanted to befriend the famous trio.  Dumbledore studied him for a moment before nodding, taking a wand out of the box in front of him.

With his own wand, Dumbledore chanted a spell, white light encompassing the other wand.  When the light dimmed, Dumbledore handed it to Sam. “This is for you to use while you’re here.  You’ll be able to perform magic required with this wand, as I have placed magic inside of it, since you don’t have your own.”

Sam held the wand reverently before turning toward Dumbledore’s bookshelf.  He pointed it at a pen sitting on one shelf, concentrating his mind.  “Wingardium Leviosa,” Sam said carefully, performing a swish-and-flick motion.

His heart beat rapidly as he watched the pen lift from the shelf, hovering in midair before Sam lowered it once more.  Sam smiled in joy, panting heavily.  “Oh my God!” he said, turning to Dean who was watching him with his mouth hanging open. “This is awesome!”

Dumbledore chuckled at Sam’s glee.  “I see you know quite a bit about our world, Young Mister Winchester.  Just don’t go getting into too much trouble, you hear?”

Sam nodded eagerly as he watched Dumbledore spell a second wand.  “Now, Mister Winchester,” he said, holding Dean’s wand out for him.  “Since you’re older than the students here, I’m going to assign you to be Hagrid’s assistant.  That will give you full run of the grounds, which will mean you can go about your business without too much trouble.  I’ll make sure you have quarters on the first floor of the castle, with a door that leads directly outside.”

Dean nodded, not having any idea who Hagrid was but glad that Dumbledore was thinking ahead.  He didn’t try anything with his wand, but tucked it under his jacket next to his gun.  “Thanks,” he said, turning to Sam.  “So what’s next?”

Sam looked back at Dumbledore.  “We don’t have robes or anything, can you help us with that?  And I guess that’s it for now.”

Dumbledore nodded, snapping his fingers.  Immediately a house elf appeared, startling Dean.

“Dobby?” Sam asked, seeing the socks and knitted hats on the elf’s body.

“Sir?  Dobby doesn’t know sir, but sir knows Dobby,” Dobby replied, eyeing Sam and Dean.  “Headmaster Dumbledore, what can Dobby do for you?”

Dumbledore knelt down next to Dobby to speak to the elf.  “Dobby, this is Sam and Dean.  They will be staying with us for the near future.  Can you get clothes together for them, and prepare a room for Dean on the first floor?  Sam’s things can go to Gryffindor tower in the sixth year boys’ dormitories.  I’m sure they would love to have your help with things in the future, if that’s alright with you.”

Dobby nodded, still looking at the boys skeptically.  Sam kneeled down in front of the house elf, holding his hand out in offering.  “Dobby, it’s an honor to meet you,” Sam said genuinely, making the house elf widen his eyes in surprise.  “And I love your socks.”  At that addition, Dobby grabbed Sam’s hand, shaking it up and down enthusiastically.

Dobby looked back to Dumbledore.  “Dobby will help them, sir.”

“Thank you, Dobby,” Dumbledore said.  “Before you go, can you ask Minerva to come to my office?”

“Yessir,” Dobby replied before disappearing.

Dean snapping his head to look at Sam.  “This place is so weird.”


	5. Chapter Four

Sam and Dean sat quietly in Dumbledore’s office for a few minutes after Dobby disappeared, watching as the old man walked around his office, mumbling to himself and moving items around.  Sam noticed Fawkes on his perch in the corner, the phoenix eyeing the Winchesters carefully.

Finally the door opened, Minerva McGonagall walking in.  Her frame, while small, was intimidating, probably from the confident way she held herself.

She looked at Sam and Dean, eyes narrowing when she didn’t recognize them, before turning to Dumbledore.

“Dobby said you wanted to see me, Albus?” McGonagall asked, eyes returning to eye the Winchesters.

Dumbledore nodded, humming to himself.  “Yes, Minerva.  This is Sam and Dean Winchester.  They will be joining us for the immediate future.”

Sam immediately stood, walking up to McGonagall and offering his hand.  “It’s an honor to meet you, Professor McGonagall.  I hope we can find time to sit and chat sometime soon, as I’d love to pick your brain.”

McGonagall shook Sam’s hand, brow furrowing in confusion.  “Thank you…” she said skeptically, turning to see that Dean was rolling his eyes at his brother’s nerd out.

“Albus?” she questioned again, once Sam had stepped away from her.  As quickly as possible, Dumbledore explained who Sam and Dean were, why they had come, and how they were going to stay at Hogwarts for the next six weeks or so.

“I’ve given them wands, charmed wands, so that they can blend in a bit,” Dumbledore explained. Sam held his out to show McGonagall what Dumbledore was talking about.  “We’ll be putting Sam in sixth year Gryffindor, while Dean here will be posing as Hagrid’s assistant.  They’ll come to you if there are any issues.”

McGonagall pursed her lips together in obvious disagreement but trusting Dumbledore’s judgment.  “Hmm,” she said, eyes raking over the Winchesters again.  “Very well, come with me then.”

Dumbledore nodded goodbye to the Winchesters as they rose, calling after them, “Welcome to Hogwarts, my boys!”

Sam heard Dean scoff behind him on the staircase down from Dumbledore’s office, but he was too busy being excited to care about Dean’s attitude.  

Once they were back in the hallway, McGonagall walked briskly, making the boys almost run to keep up. “I’ll take you out to Hagrid’s cabin first, introduce you,” she explained as she walked toward the front doors where they had come in.  “Then we’ll go to Gryffindor tower.  Your things should be there by that time.”

Sam grinned, looking over at Dean’s unimpressed face as they walked out on the grounds.  Now that they were accepted here and ready to stay, Sam couldn’t stop looking around in wonder.  Students were milling about at this point, eyes drawn to the two strangers walking with Professor McGonagall across the lawn.

Hagrid’s cabin came into view soon enough, and Sam sped up his steps.  Meeting the half-giant was definitely going to be exciting, and he hoped Hagrid liked him well enough.

McGonagall marched up the few steps to Hagrid’s door, turning to make sure the Winchesters were right behind her before she knocked harshly three times.  They heard a clanking inside as Hagrid was obviously startled, but opened the door in just a minute. 

“Professor!” Hagrid greeted, pulling the woman into a hug.  “What brings you to my humble abode?” he asked, pushing McGonagall inside as he spoke.

A wave of her hand had the Winchesters following, Hagrid noticing them as he grabbed a large kettle. “These are the Winchesters, Hagrid. Sam and Dean,” McGonagall introduced, Sam giving a wave as she said his name and Dean nodding.

“Dean here is starting as your assistant for the immediate future, on Dumbledore’s orders.  He’ll be helping you with some of your duties, in addition to other things he’ll be working on for the Headmaster,” she continued.

Hagrid walked over to the brothers, standing a solid four to five feet above their heads.  He held out his huge hand to shake, which Sam took first.

“Great to meet you, Hagrid, we’ve only heard wonderful things,” Sam said, smiling genuinely.

“Thank yeh, boy,” Hagrid replied, turning to Dean.  “So you ‘n me, eh?”

Dean took Hagrid’s hand, nodding.  “Looks like it,” he replied, not looking too excited about the whole thing but playing along well enough.

“We’re goin’ to have a lotta fun, you ‘n me.  There’s so many wonderful things ‘bout this place, I’ll teach yeh everythin’ I know!” Hagrid gushed, obviously excited to have someone to work with.

“Sounds great,” Dean replied, rubbing his hand where Hagrid had gripped it just a bit too hard.

“We can’t stay, Hagrid,” McGonagall interrupted.  “Need to show Young Mister Winchester here where Gryffindor tower is.”

“Of course, of course,” Hagrid said, nodding.  “Tell Harry I say hallo, will yeh?”

McGonagall smiled at him, a genuine smile.  “Of course, Hagrid.  We’ll see you later.”

The Winchesters followed her out the door, Sam sending Hagrid a wave before he closed the door behind him.  “You’re gonna have so much fun with Hagrid, Dean,” Sam said to his brother.  “He’s just the best.”

McGonagall, who was already a few paces ahead of them, turned to look at Sam while he was speaking, seeing the genuine excitement on his face.  Sam noticed her looking and smiled at her as well, but she turned away quickly, walking back to the castle.

She led them inside, turning down corridors and going up staircases that Sam was sure he’d get lost in. Hopefully he could follow other students for the first few days before he had to get around himself, but he was sure that Dean would just wander around until he found his way.  Finally they approached a long hallway, familiar portrait hanging at the end.

There were nervous and excited butterflies in Sam’s stomach, and he steeled himself for even more wonder to come.

“Well, what do we have here?” the Fat Lady questioned, curious eyes landing on Sam and Dean. “New students?”

McGonagall cleared her throat, bringing all attention back to her.  “The password to the tower currently is  _Mimbulus Mimbletonia_ , and don’t forget it.  Fat Lady, young Mister Winchester is a new sixth year student in Gryffindor, and his older brother is working for Hagrid.”

The Fat Lady nodded in understanding, her portrait swinging open and allowing the three of them to enter.

Sam’s eyes went wide as he took in the Gryffindor Common Room, words never quite giving it the justice it deserved.  Red and gold popped from every corner and there were students milling about – playing games, studying, chatting.  Sam grinned at Dean, who rolled his eyes.

Whatever, Sam was in nerd heaven.

“Mister Potter, Mister Weasley, Mister Longbottom, please come here,” McGonagall called out, making Sam’s eyes snap to one side of the room.  He could barely breathe as he saw, right there in front of him, three of the characters he’d read about for years.  Even Dean was fascinated, having heard about Harry Potter from Sam since the first book came out.

Harry, Ron, and Neville looked Sam and Dean up and down, unsure of what was going on.  “Yes, professor?” Harry asked politely, hoping for an explanation.

 _Boy Who Lived, needing to know everything_ , Sam thought.  He grinned to himself.

“Boys, this is Sam Winchester, who will be joining you as a sixth year Gryffindor.  His older brother, Dean, will be working with Hagrid. I expect the three of you to show the Winchesters around and help Sam catch up with his work, as he is already behind for the year.”  The last part of McGonagall’s introduction was aimed toward Sam, eyes clearly communicating that she expected nothing but hard work from him, to ensure his cover stay in tact.  All five of them nodded, McGonagall’s tone of voice leaving no argument.  

“Right,” she said, once she was sure they all understood her.  “Your things should be in your rooms, boys.  Mister Winchester,” she addressed Dean, “I’m assuming you’ll want to stay here for a bit.  When you want to retire to your rooms, just call for Dobby and he’ll lead you there. Mister Potter can help you call for him, if necessary.”

Dean nodded, having no idea how to call Dobby but figuring Sam could help him, or Harry would just help. Maybe – the way Harry was eyeing the Winchesters skeptically had Dean wondering if this storybook hero was going to be helpful or not.

With a final nod of her head, McGonagall headed back through the portrait, leaving Sam and Dean standing in the middle of the Gryffindor Common Room.  


	6. Chapter Five

Sam bounced on his heels, eagerly taking in the Gryffindor Common Room surrounding him, while Dean’s eyes were scanning the room for other reasons – finding exits, possible weapons, taking note of suspicious behavior.

“Well,” Harry said after a moment of awkwardness.  “I’m Harry Potter.”

Sam was shocked at the pretentious way that Harry introduced himself, expecting something a bit more reserved from the character he’d read so much about.  Sam nodded, the recognition in his eyes seeming to be enough for Harry to continue.  “This is Ron Weasley and Neville Longbottom.  The other guys in sixth year are out right now – Dean Thomas and Seamus Finnigan.  So where are you from?”

“None of your business,” Dean immediately replied, earning an elbow to his gut from Sam.  Dean rubbed the sore place as Sam answered.

“I’m a transfer student from Ilvermorny.  Our parents were called in to help out…you know,” Sam gave Harry a pointed look, hoping that he could interpret something from it and believe him.  “Dean needed a job and was great at working with the magical creatures back home, so Dumbledore decided to see if Hagrid needed help.”

Neville grinned at Sam’s answer, seeming to accept it easily.  Ron looked toward Harry for guidance, and Harry still looked skeptical, especially with Dean’s initial rude response.  “Alright then.  Well, welcome to Hogwarts, I guess.”

As if that was the time to end the conversation, Harry turned, returning to the chairs that they had been at moments before.  Ron and Neville followed, not wanting to cause drama with their friend.  Sam watched them go, slightly disappointed with his initial meeting with  _the_  Harry Potter.

“Dude,” he reprimanded Dean once they’d all sat back down.  “You’ve got to lighten up.  There’s lots of shit going on here right now, and if you’re not nice they’re gonna think you work for the bad guys.”

Dean rolled his eyes, waving at the room around them.  “This is ridiculous, Sam!  Why are we even here – we should be out there trying to find Lucifer.”

Sam held up a hand to stop Dean’s rant, knowing that he would go on for hours.  “Just, let us try this way first.  I really think Dumbledore, McGonagall, and the trio can help us, we just need to get on their good side.  They’ve been fighting against Voldemort for years now – they can help us find Lucifer.”

Dean sighed, looking around the room a final time.  “Okay, we’ll try it your way.  Just don’t get mad when this doesn’t work out.  Now how the hell am I supposed to get to my room?”

Sam grinned.  “Dobby!” he said with authority, jumping only a little bit when the house elf popped up a couple feet away from them.

“Damn, you’d think I’d be used to that with Cas…” Dean grumbled, but Sam ignored him.

“Hey Dobby, I really appreciate you helping us get settled in,” Sam started, holding his hand out for Dobby to shake once more.  The house elf’s eyes widened, shocked that this new visitor was being so polite.  He took Sam’s hand gently, giggling when Sam shook it up and down.

“Of course, sir. Dobby is happy to help, sir.  What can Dobby to for you now, sir?”

Sam grinned, straightening up and motioning to Dean.  “Dean wants to go to his rooms.  Can you show him the way?”

“Yes, sir.  Of course, sir.  Right this way, sir!” was Dobby’s response.  Dean watched the little elf walk toward the portrait before looking back at Sam.  

“Don’t forget your way, and the password!” Sam reminded him, grinning.  Dean gave him a confused look, obviously having already forgotten it. “Or you can just call for Dobby when you need to go somewhere, at least for now.”

Dean sighed, realizing Dobby was already out the portrait and not waiting for him.  He pushed Sam, trying to get some of his annoyance out or something, before running after the elf.

Sam watched him go before letting his eyes roam the room again, true excitement in his belly.  Now to just get the Golden Trio to trust him.

Now that Dean was gone, Sam walked over to the side of the room where Harry was.  He hoped he could make a better second impression, now that his sulking brother was out of the way.

“Hey, can I join you?” Sam asked with a smile on his face as he approached.  Neville grinned back, but Harry and Ron gave Sam a serious once over.

“Sure, I guess,” Harry finally said, and Sam pulled up a chair.  

Harry and Ron were playing wizard’s chess, Neville watching them while he worked on some sort of homework. Nobody said anything, but Sam sat mesmerized at the moving chess pieces, watching Ron’s strategy unfold.

After Ron’s knight took one of Harry’s pawns, Sam spoke.  “You’re really good at wizard’s chess, Ron.”

Ron looked over at Sam, surprise on his face.  “Uh, thanks.”

Harry chuckled a laugh, giving his pieces an order before talking to Sam.  “Ron’s always been good at wizard’s chess, right Ron?”  The two of them shared a grin, probably thinking back to their first year, or so Sam figured.

“Have you ever seen those giant boards they make?” Sam asked, trying to be in on their little secret without outing that he knew what they’d done to get the Sorcerer’s Stone. “My brother and I played with one once, it was intense.”

Both Harry and Ron looked at Sam with wide eyes before deciding to ignore the question, eyes back on their game.

Sam sighed, leaning back in his chair in defeat.  Getting to know the Boy Who Lived was going to be more difficult than he thought.

Just then, a commotion sounded behind him.  Sam turned, seeing that a girl had come in through the portrait, only to trip and have her books fly everywhere.  Always helpful, Sam headed over, picking up books and parchment with the girl.

“Thank you so much,” Sam heard from her as he stacked the books under his arm, standing up and offering her a hand.

She took it, finally looking up at him and realizing that she didn’t know him.  He recognized her look of confusion and decided to explain. “No problem.  I’m Sam Winchester, I’m a new sixth year.”

A smile lit up the girl’s face as she nodded.  “Nice to meet you Sam, I’m Hermione Granger.”

From anyone else’s perspective, they might have said that Sam’s jaw dropped.  Seeing Harry and Ron and Neville for the first time was alright, but here he was meeting Hermione Granger, a character who Sam had always had a soft spot for.  She was brilliant, funny, and had incredible talent, and he had always admired how amazing she was.  Sam was definitely of the opinion that without Hermione in Harry’s life, there’s no way the Boy Who Lived would have lived for very long.

Hermione cleared her throat, pulling Sam from his thoughts.  He held her books out, realizing that her arms were still full of other books.  “Can I help you with these?” he asked with a smile, seeing a book on the top of the stack that he recognized.  “Oh, I’ve read this,  _The Handmaid’s Tale_ , it’s really good.  Atwood’s commentary on society and class systems definitely makes you think. Thank Chuc- Thank Merlin the world isn’t actually like that, and hopefully never will be.”

Hermione looked up at Sam with surprise on her face, obviously not expecting him to know anything about the Muggle book.  She was usually surrounded by boys who were not well read, Sam knew, so he already stood out.  Finally she smiled.  “Yes, I’m quite enjoying it, as much as one can enjoy a book of its nature.  Can you put all that down here?”

Hermione nodded toward an empty table and Sam obliged.  He saw that she was carrying a few school books, parchment, and some other library books that he figured she was reading for fun.  An idea popped in his head.  
“So, I’m obviously starting the semester a little bit late, but Professor McGonagall expects me to catch up as quickly as possible,” Sam started, sitting in a chair across from Hermione.  “Would you be willing to help me catch up, get all my assignments in order, so that I don’t fall impossibly behind?”

Hermione’s face broke out into a grin, her brown eyes twinkling.  “I’d be happy to, Sam.  I even have here…” She shuffled through her stacks of books, finding a parchment with a hand drawn September calendar on it.  “This is my study schedule for September.  If they’re expecting you to complete all of the assignments thus far, this should help you be organized.”

Sam grinned at her as she continued, pulling out a new piece of parchment and a quill.  “I can re-organize this for you beginning today, if you’d like.  It’ll only take me a little while, I do this all the time with Harry and Ron.”

Hermione’s quill was already working when she looked up at Sam.  “Oh!  Did you meet Harry and Ron?” she asked as she looked across the room to where the boys were still playing chess.  “You’ll be sharing a room with them.”

Sam nodded.  “Yeah, McGonagall introduced us when we got here. Not sure if they like me, it was weird. Coulda been my brother’s fault though, he isn’t all that excited to be here.”

Hermione listened to Sam with interest.  “Your brother is here too?” she asked, genuine curiosity on her face.

Sam nodded again. “Yes, my brother Dean is going to be Hagrid’s assistant.  He’s already, uh, graduated from school.  Our parents moved here and wanted us both at Hogwarts, so here we are.”

Hermione gave Sam a smile, going back to her calendar work.  Sam looked through the stack of books, immediately reaching for one whose title he recognized.

“ _Hogwarts, A History_ ,” he said.  “I’ve always wanted to read this!”  He opened the cover, worn from use, turning to page one. He was so engrossed in the new information that he missed the smile Hermione sent his way, obvious happiness on her face from meeting her new, nerdy friend.


	7. Chapter Six

Before they know it, a week had gone by at Hogwarts.  Dean found his hands full of Hagrid at all times, overwhelmed with the incompetency of the half-giant, his lack of organization, and the fact that he assumed that Dean already knew everything about the creatures they were using for their classes.

Sam was having a much more pleasant time.  He wasn’t taking as many classes as Hermione (everything but Astronomy and Arithmancy – he didn’t want to be too overwhelmed), but catching up was one of the most challenging and exciting tasks he’d ever given himself.

The first night, he’d stayed up extra late and stayed in the common room to practice basic spells, finding a copy of  _Standard Book of Spells, Grade 1_  left on one of the tables there.  Many of the spells he recognized from the books, practicing his Levitation Spell, Lumos, Locking and Unlocking Charms, and Fire Spell.  Whatever Dumbledore had done to his wand seemed to work well enough, as he only had to learn control over the spell rather than channeling magic – something he sadly didn’t have within him like the wizards and witches around him.

Sam got by the first few days without embarrassing himself in class, as the professors all merely gave him the work to catch up on and continued on with their classes.  In Charms and Transfiguration, the classes in which he was afraid he’d have to do spellwork in front of the class, he was able to feign worry of being behind to keep away from the spells.  

After the first couple days, Sam made mental notes to look ahead at what they’d be learning so that he could prepare for each of those practical magic classes ahead of time.

Potions with Professor Slughorn was pleasant, as Sam was a decent cook and a master at following instructions.  He was paired up with Hermione, since Slughorn deemed him to need a tutor, and she was able to help him through tricky things.

All the while, however, Hermione was muttering under her breath how frustrating it was that Harry’s textbook was giving him additional notes and  _how could he_  just follow the scribblings of what could be a mad man?

Sam grinned at her, wishing he could tell her they were just Snape’s notes and that nothing bad could happen.  He didn’t dare, however, not knowing if he was allowed to share knowledge with her, let alone how he would explain knowing details about their lives.

Defense Against the Dark Arts was the class that Sam was most looking forward to, except that he was not excited to meet Snape.  Actually, he was fascinated with the idea of meeting such a complicated character of a man, but that was how he felt about Snape in the books.  In real life?  Nerve wracking.

Luckily, Snape barely batted an eye at Sam, only taking the time to pile assignments in front of him before going into full lecture mode.  Sam took even more meticulous notes in DADA than any other class, knowing that if he stepped a toe out of line with Snape, the professor would have his head.

Hermione was a huge saving grace to Sam, helping him with his studies and spending hours with him studying each night in the library.  For Sam, it was time to catch up on assignments and practice simple spells, under the guise of wanting to stay sharp, and for Hermione it was time to add an extra few inches to every essay she had to write.

Sam didn’t miss the looks that Harry and Ron shot his way when he and Hermione would walk together to and from class, sit together in the Great Hall for meals, or come back to the common room late after studying.  He could tell that the two of them were still unsure about his and Dean’s abrupt appearance, but he wasn’t quite sure what to do about it.  Any time he approached them or said anything in the boy’s dormitory, they acted like nothing was wrong.

It was in the Great Hall for breakfast one morning about a week after they’d arrived that Dean finally said something to Sam.  Hermione hadn’t come to breakfast with them, giving them some time alone.

“Sam, we’ve been here for a week and still don’t know where Lucifer is,” Dean reprimanded.  “I’ve been elbow deep in creatures that shouldn’t even exist, so exhausted every evening that I can’t even figure out if there’s internet or computers here.”

Sam laughed slightly at Dean’s statement, realizing Dean didn’t know that electronics probably didn’t work at the castle.  “Dean, just relax,” Sam reassured him.  “I’ve been checking the paper every morning, and Dumbledore and I have messaged briefly, he’s been keeping his ears open for any underground information that wouldn’t be in the Prophet.”

Dean, having no idea what the Prophet was, just gave Sam a confused puppy look, but that was when Hermione approached and joined them.

“Good morning, boys,” she said with the air of authority that always followed her around, Sam smiling at her immediately.  “What have I missed?”

Dean stuffed French toast in his mouth, letting Sam answer Hermione’s question.  “Oh, nothing.  Just waiting for the paper.”

As if the owls had heard Sam’s words, they started swooping down from the windows, dropping papers in front of the students who took it.  One fell in front of Hermione, and Sam leaned over to skim the headlines.

Unfortunately, it seemed that the time had come for Sam and Dean to get into gear.

**_MASSIVE ATTACK IN LONDON BY UNKNOWN WIZARD PAIR, 18 MURDERED_ **

An image was under the title, the little moving picture showing two out-of-focus criminals.  

It didn’t need to be in focus, however, for Sam and Dean to recognize Lucifer.  Sam could only assume that the other person in the picture was Voldemort, no one else in the Wizarding World dumb enough or powerful enough for a team-up with an archangel.  Dean grabbed the paper from Hermione’s hand across the table, eyes skimming the article before he looked over at Sam.

“We need to talk to Dumbledore.”

* * *

While many of the other students in the castle continued their breakfasts, Sam and Dean were heading toward the gargoyle marking the entrance to Dumbledore’s office.  They ignored Hermione’s protests as they left, much to Sam’s chagrin.

It didn’t last long, however, the brothers cut off on their way by the Golden Trio.

“Wha-?  How’d you get ahead of us?” Dean demanded to know, but Sam just rolled his eyes.

“Secret passage, Dean,” Sam explained to his brother.  “They know more about this school than everyone except Dumbledore, probably.”

Harry shot Hermione a look, obviously thinking that she had told Sam about the Map or their not-so-proper past with breaking the rules, but she shook her head.  Before Harry could say anything to Sam, however, Dean interrupted.

“Whatever, we just have to talk to the old man,” Dean said to the trio before grabbing Sam’s arm and pushing his way past the boys.  “We’ve got to take them down, now.”

“Take who down?” Harry demanded, not letting Sam and Dean get far.  They turned back, sharing a look.

“Voldemort and Lucifer,” Sam said simply.  “Well, less Voldemort and more Lucifer, but if we can get both of them that’d be a bonus for everyone.”

Harry looked at Sam like he’d grown an extra head as he spoke.  “You think you can take down Voldemort?  And who the heck is Lucifer?”

Dean took a step forward, pushing Sam slightly behind him.  “Look, Harry.  It doesn’t really matter.  I just won’t stand by while they’re out there killing people.  We gotta get those bastards before anybody else gets hurt.”

Harry took a minute to appraise Dean, seeing how serious he was about the whole situation.  Finally he nodded.  “I agree.  What’s the plan?”

Dean looked back at Sam over his shoulder.  “Uh, look. Appreciate it, but no thanks. Sammy and I can handle this one.”

Before Dean could turn to continue toward Dumbledore’s office, Hermione’s voice stopped them.

“Who is Lucifer?”

Dean sighed, frustrated that their goals were being pushed off by these three teenagers.  “Look, we don’t really have the time to explain-“

“Lucifer is the reason why Dean and I are here,” Sam said, cutting off Dean’s words.  Dean looked at his brother, shocked that he would just blurt out the truth like that.

“Dude,” Dean reprimanded, hitting Sam’s chest with the back of his hand.  Sam shrugged, knowing that he couldn’t lie to Hermione.

“Look, it doesn’t really matter,” Sam continued, “but we have to talk to Dumbledore.  Trust me, Hermione, you don’t want to get into this.”

Hermione looked over to Harry and Ron next to her, seeing that they were mirroring the same look that was on her face – none of them would let themselves be sidelined.  She crossed her arms, giving Sam her best you-can’t-tell-me-what-to-do glare.  

Seeing that the trio wasn’t going to leave them alone, Sam and Dean let them come with them to Dumbledore’s office, not speaking to him about the things they really wanted to say, but letting Harry talk to the Headmaster about not being left out of the loop.

Dumbledore let Harry talk, calming the boy down considerably.  He gave Sam and Dean a few pointed looks, knowing that they’d rather be discussing things privately, but none of them sending the trio away. Maybe Sam and Dean would just need to do this on their own.

They only gathered one bit of information from Dumbledore – word spread through the Order to him after the attack that was not published in the Prophet:

Lucifer and Voldemort declared that they were taking over all of the world, and anyone standing in their way would perish.


	8. Chapter Seven

It was back in the common room that evening studying with Hermione that Sam’s brain finally caught up to everything that was happening.  Sure, he’d guessed that Lucifer had come to the Wizarding World to join up with Voldemort, but now it was actually happening.

That didn’t compute quickly enough for Sam, but his brain was there now.

Realizing that fighting Voldemort wasn’t something that Sam and Dean had any idea how to do, he cleared his throat, interrupting Hermione from her studies.

“Yes?” she asked as she looked up at Sam, seeing him looking at her intently.

“Can you help me and Dean with something?” Sam asked, hoping that he could trust Hermione.  After all the time they’d spent together studying over the past week, he was sure he could.

Hermione put her quill down, giving Sam her full attention through suspicious eyes.  “Perhaps,” she responded, gesturing for Sam to continue.

“Will you help us learn how to duel?” Sam asked, continuing before she could question him.  “We haven’t, ah, we don’t know enough spells that would be helpful in a fight setting, and probably need to get up to speed on that…”

Hermione continued to look at Sam somewhat suspiciously, but finally shrugged.  “Yeah, I mean, I can help.  But Harry’s the best dueler in the class…”

Sam shook his head, not particularly wanting to get Harry or Ron involved in his training.  He didn’t want them to think he was incapable of fighting just because he didn’t know  _their_ type of fighting.

“I’d rather you just help us.  I don’t think Harry likes us much…”

Hermione laughed a bit, nodding.  “It’s Dean, more than you I think, but yeah.”  She watched him for a minute before grabbing a new piece of parchment. She started writing a list, speaking as she did so.  “These are the spells we have found useful in duels, at least practice duels,” Sam thought she corrected herself because he wasn’t supposed to know about the battle at the ministry the previous year, “so why don’t the two of you brush up on them and then we can meet to practice tomorrow evening at 7?  I’ll find us a spare room somewhere…maybe somewhere on the seventh floor…”

Sam grinned, knowing that Hermione was sure to create a perfect practice space in the Room of Requirement for them.  She was done with the list in just a few minutes, handing it over to Sam.  He glanced through the spells, recognizing many of them but never having tried them before.  It was going to be a long night for him and Dean to have the chance to practice the spells for the first time before they embarrassed themselves in front of Hermione.

“I’m gonna go meet up with Dean, tell him the plan.  Thanks, Hermione,” Sam said as he stood, packing his books.  She just nodded, getting back to her homework as he headed out the portrait.

Needless to say, it took Sam and Dean all night to go through the spells, the two of them a bit worn for wear after throwing each other against the wall in practice, giving each other jelly legs, and charming birds from thin air to peck at their heads. By the end of the night, however, Sam was confident that they wouldn’t embarrass themselves in front of Hermione with a lack of experience in the spells she mentioned.  He’d be able to explain away any other unknown spells by saying they didn’t learn them in the States.

Every evening that week, Hermione met Sam and Dean at the Room of Requirement (of course, Sam never admitted to knowing that it was the Room of Requirement, letting Hermione just pretend it was a practice room for any students) and taught them basics of dueling.  Sam and Dean had enough fighting experience to understand the logistics, but it was one thing to be fighting hand-to-hand versus throwing spells across twenty feet.

The third night, Sam and Dean followed up their dueling practice with actual sparring, Hermione insisting that she stay and watch.  She pretended not to notice when a rack of martial arts fighting sticks and swords popped up in the corner of the room, pretending that they’d always been there. Sam, however, knew that the Room was providing them with things to use for practice, and he appreciated it.

It was the fifth night of dueling that Hermione brought Harry and Ron, insisting that they practice dueling against people other than her and themselves, also mentioning that they should teach the boys their hand-to-hand combat.  Dean rolled his eyes, not wanting to train someone from scratch, so Sam put on the teacher hat.

It was after an evening of beating each other up – magically and physically – that they were stopped in the hallway on the way back to the dormitories by none other than Snape.

“Well, well, well,” he hissed, eyes flitting between the five of them.  “What have we here?”

“We’re just on our way back to Gryffindor Tower, Professor,” Hermione replied politely, knowing that Snape had been on a power trip ever since getting the DADA position.

“And the torn robes and limps you have here?” Snape asked, waving his wand in the direction of Harry and Sam, who were both a little worn from their practicing.

“I tripped, took Harry down with me,” Sam immediately spoke up, hoping his fib would be enough for Snape.

It wasn’t.

“Ever since you and your incompetent brother arrived,” Snape said to Sam, eyeing Dean behind, “things have been awfully strange around here.  I think a meeting with Dumbledore is in order.”

“But Profes-“ Hermione began, but Snape’s hand shot up, immediately silencing her.  

“Not you, Miss Granger,” he said with authority.  “You, Mister Weasley, and Mister Potter will return to the tower, immediately.”

When the trio didn’t move, Snape puffed his chest out as best he could to look authoritative. “NOW!”

Hermione gave Sam a look, silently telling him good luck and not to get in trouble, before pulling Harry and Ron down the hallway.  Snape turned to walk the other way, not even turning back to see if Sam and Dean were following.

“Can I punch him?” Dean whispered to Sam as they began walking, making Sam chuckle a bit.  

“No, Dean.  It’ll be alright.”

Snape didn’t say a word to either of them as they entered the Headmaster’s office, immediately launching into a full explanation on why he didn’t trust either of them: Where did they come from?  Why are they here?  Why are there no records of either of them from Ilvermorny?  Why are they wandering the halls at night with the so-called Golden Trio, surely causing trouble?  Why give Hagrid an assistant now, after all these years, especially one who is incompetent?

When Dean tried to talk back to that last question, Dumbledore put his hand up, silencing everyone in the room.

“Severus,” he began, eyeing the Winchesters.  “I believe it’s time that you and the Winchesters had a little chat.”

Sam looked to Dean, realizing that Dumbledore wanted to tell Snape the truth.  Dean didn’t get the meaning behind Dumbledore’s words, however, so Sam took the lead.

“So it’s kind of a long story, Professor…”

* * *

Sam and Dean were only in Dumbledore’s office long enough to explain everything to Snape, showing him their fake wands and Sam even letting Snape see a memory in the pensive.  It was much harder to convince Snape of their truthfulness, but eventually he came along.

The Winchesters headed out of the office, leaving Dumbledore and Snape to more discussion, and headed toward the tower.  They hadn’t gotten very far, however, when Hermione jumped out from the shadows.

“What happened?” she asked, genuine curiosity in her voice.  Before Sam could speak, Dean answered.

“Nothing, we’re just heading to bed.”

Sam rolled his eyes, knowing that Hermione wouldn’t accept that answer.  He was right.

“Nothing?  You didn’t get detention?  You didn’t get fired?  What did Dumbledore say?  Is Snape in trouble?  Is Snape even allowed to punish you, Dean, since you’re not a student?”

It took Sam’s hand in Hermione’s face to stop her questions, a bitch-face sent toward his brother. “You can’t just say that to Hermione, Dean,” he reprimanded.  “She’s always going to want to know more.”

“Of course I want to know more.  I want to know everything,” Hermione confirmed, moving Sam’s hand away from her nose.  “What happened?”

Dean still wasn’t having it, obviously tired and grumpy.  “Nothing, Hermione.  We talked, we left.  The end.”

Hermione turned to Sam, not getting the answers she wanted from Dean.  “Sam, what happened?”

Sam swallowed deeply, not knowing what to do.  He knew from both reading the books and getting to know Hermione in the recent weeks that she was persistent, always wanting explanations and details.  He knew Dean wouldn’t want to bring yet  _another_  person in on their secret, but he wasn’t prepared with another explanation for her.

Hermione could see the storm brewing behind Sam’s eyes, which made her press even further. “There’s something you’re not telling me, Sam.  I’ve known it since that first day we met, I know you’re not who you say you are. Your parents aren’t here, you’ve been lying to all of us.  So tell me, what’s going on?”

Sam looked to Dean for help but only saw him shaking his head.  “Sam…” Dean said in a warning tone, already knowing that his brother wanted to tell Hermione the truth.

“Dean, she could help,” Sam pleaded, and Dean scoffed.  

“No, Sam, she doesn’t need to know, she’s just a kid,” he said with authority, but Sam and Hermione both were talking over him before he could even finish his thought.

“This  _kid_  has already faced Voldemort-“ Hermione retorted, while Sam was arguing too:

“She’s not just any  _kid_ , Dean, she’s the smartest witch of her age-“

Dean’s hands up in the air stopped both of their words, Hermione and Sam waiting for Dean’s next comment.

“Fine,” he sighed, looking more tired than ever.  “I know I won’t be able to stop you, but you tell her, she becomes  _your_ responsibility.  Not my problem, yours.  I’m going to get ready for what’s coming.”

With that, Dean turned on the spot, heading for his rooms, presumably, and leaving Sam and Hermione alone in the corridor.  Sam could feel Hermione’s eyes on him as he watched his brother go, trying to organize his thoughts on how the heck he was going to tell Hermione the truth without freaking her out.

Finally he spoke, not looking at her.  “Why don’t we go back up to the Room of Requirement, I really need a beer and a comfy chair for this conversation.”


	9. Chapter Eight

_“Why don’t we go back up to the Room of Requirement, I really need a beer and a comfy chair for this conversation.”_

Hermione started at Sam’s words, shocked by how old and tired he sounded, and the fact that he knew the name of the Room.  She led the way, though, going back up to the 7th floor corridor and letting Sam pace in front of the wall.  He wasn’t sure if what he was asking for would work, but when he opened the door he breathed a sigh of relief.

Inside, the Room had created a replica of the bunker.  They entered as if they’d just come from the outside, iron staircase leading down to the map table, with the library ahead of them.  A corridor went off to one side, presumably laying out their bedrooms, but Sam didn’t investigate any further than the mini-fridge Dean had installed next to the giant telescope.

Once he’d opened the beer and taken a long gulp, he looked for Hermione, seeing her still at the top of the stairs, taking everything in.

“Hermione?” Sam prompted, pulling her out of her reverie.

“What is this place?” she asked in response, finally taking slow steps down the staircase.  Sam sighed, motioning her to follow him into the library so he could collapse into a familiar chair there.

“This is my home, where I live and work, where I’m from,” he answered simply and truthfully, hoping that the bunker would help him explain everything.  “Dean and I, we’re not from your world, and neither is Voldemort’s newest friend Lucifer.”

Hermione sat down across from Sam, eyes trained on him now instead of the room around them.  “Tell me everything,” she demanded, so after another long drink, Sam acquiesced.

Sam explained everything to Hermione, beginning with who Lucifer was and the fact that they had followed him to the Wizarding World to stop him from doing anything horrible here. Of course, that brought up a thousand questions from Hermione, and Sam found himself giving her the Cliffs Notes version of his life.

She didn’t, for even a second, doubt anything Sam told her, seeing the truth and weariness behind his eyes.

When he mentioned that he was actually much older than sixteen she seemed surprised, but admitted that it made sense.  “No boys my age are as mature as you, Sam,” she admitted, seeming to accept that as fact. “I usually get along much better with people older than me, it’s always been that way.”

Sam nodded, thinking of the way that Hermione had spoken to him about Remus and Tonks, along with the older Weasley boys and even Kingsley Shacklebolt.  Hermione was smart enough that she enjoyed conversation with adults, and it was only natural for Sam’s thirst for knowledge to appeal to her as well.

When they had gotten through the nitty-gritty of Sam’s life story, he took her on a small tour of the bunker.  The Room had gotten pretty much everything down, even many of the books in the library were real.  Sam had to drag Hermione away from the shelves, or he knew she’d spend hours there reading about his world.

The Room had, in fact, gotten their bedrooms right as well, and Sam took her on a tour of the long corridor.  He showed her pictures of him and Dean as they were older, Dean’s gun collection in his room, and Sam’s bookcase he had in his.

Hermione’s fingers trailed the spines of his private collection, eyes lighting up at familiar and unfamiliar titles alike.  “Some of these haven’t even been published yet,” she admonished, the joy of learning in her voice.  

Sam watched her, smile on his face, as she flipped through pages, getting just as much happiness from her being happy.  She finally realized that he was watching her closely and she blushed, putting the books away.  Tentatively, she walked over to where he was leaning on his desk, stopping just in front of him.

“Thank you for sharing this with me, Sam,” she said sincerely, unable to meet his eyes. “While I am quite sad with the knowledge that you’ll be leaving soon enough, I am very glad that you and I have spent time getting to know one another.”

Sam reached out to take her hand in his, giving it a reassuring squeeze.  “I am too, Hermione,” he responded truthfully, the admittance making her meet his gaze.  Before she could stop herself, she rocked forward on her tip-toes, kissing him gently on the lips.

It was a sweet kiss, one that Sam’s teenage body enjoyed for all its worth.  He had to admit to himself that he’d dreamed of kissing Hermione many, many times, both since they’d come to the Wizarding World and before – dreaming of a fictional character as the perfect girl for him.

It was those previous dreams that had Sam pulling her closer to him, her body flush with his as his tongue probed for entrance.  Hermione sighed into him, letting his hand cup her face gently as he angled their mouths together.

Time was irrelevant as they stood there together, in the middle of both the bunker and Hogwarts at the same time.  It was the colliding of two worlds, Sam Winchester from Lawrence, Kansas and Hermione Granger from Hogwarts.

When they finally separated, it was only to walk back to Gryffindor Tower, hand in hand.  Neither of them knew what was coming between them, Harry and Ron, Dean, and Lucifer and Voldemort, but they knew that they could take anything head on, as long as they were together.

* * *

Dean knew immediately upon seeing Sam that something had happened between him and Hermione, but he didn’t pry.  What his brother wanted to do while they were on their ‘vacation’ to Harry-Potter-World was his business, he just hoped that Sam wouldn’t be too distracted when they needed to get work done.

It was the lack of action that had all of them antsy, Dean and Harry the most of everyone.

After Voldemort and Lucifer’s declaration that they were taking over the world, nothing at all seemed to be happening.  The evening dueling practices continued in the Room of Requirement, everyone waiting to get out there and fight.  All parties involved were worried, enough for Sam and Hermione to go to Dumbledore one night.

“We must wait and see,” was all Dumbledore would say, letting Sam experience first-hand how frustrating the old man was.

Hermione laughed when Sam shared that opinion with her, agreeing that Dumbledore was often too vague to be helpful, but he’d be there when they most needed him.  Sam thought to Dumbledore’s blackening hand, wondering if his and Dean’s appearance into the storyline was changing this universe into  _another_  alternate, but he kept his mouth shut.

Classes went on as normal, none of the professors (even McGonagall and Snape who know the truth) giving them any slack from their work.  After all, they were in NEWT level classes, meaning that everything was challenging.

Now that Hermione knew about Sam being brand new at magic, not even possessing any of his own, she helped him even more than before.  As their spells in Charms class got more difficult, Sam found Hermione waving her wand in time with his to ensure no one else found out that he was nonmagical.  

Sometimes he thanked her for those days with a quick kiss on the cheek after class, to which she blushed a beautiful pink.

“I’m tired of waiting,” Dean complained one night as they began their dueling practice.  Harry threw a spell at him, but Dean just waved it off with a shield spell.  Truthfully, the wands Dumbledore had made them were quite good at dueling, and Sam had to wonder if that was done on purpose.

“Doesn’t matter, Dean. We don’t know where they are, so we’ve gotta see what happens,” Sam replied before throwing a spell toward Hermione.

“What if we just send a message, a ‘Hey, Luci, remember me?  Come and get me!’” Dean said obnoxiously, his distraction allowing Harry to get a binding spell through Dean’s shield.  Dean fell straight over as the ropes wrapped themselves around his arm, an annoyed groan leaving his lips.  

“No, Dean.  We’re waiting,” Sam said with finality as he headed over to sever the ropes, freeing his annoyed brother.


	10. Chapter Nine

The Saturday after Dean’s frustrated night, their wait was over.

To everyone’s surprise, dawn came with Voldemort and Lucifer approaching the gates of Hogwarts. Dumbledore immediately woke the trio, Sam and Dean, and the professors.  The rest of the student body was kept in their dormitories, excuses of a dragon pox epidemic keeping them all away from the action.  Clouds were created to block the windows of Gryffindor tower so that no antsy lions were able to see what was happening out on the grounds.

Dean grabbed his guns and weapons he’d brought with him, insisting that Sam do the same.  “Sure, we’ve learned to duel.  But my gun has yet to let me down,” he explained.  Sam had to agree that many problems in the Wizarding World could have been solved with Muggle weapons, so he loaded up as well.

The gates of Hogwarts were successfully keeping Voldemort and Lucifer out, so the group of defenders were able to march down the steps of the castle and create their plan of action with no distractions.

“Sam and I are going first, nobody else,” Dean said with authority, looking to Dumbledore as if he were ready to argue.  To everyone’s shock, Dumbledore nodded at Dean’s statement.

“I do believe it will be best for the young Winchesters to lead us into this battle, having the most knowledge of our newest foe,” Dumbledore explained his reasoning, and that was that.  Hermione grabbed Sam’s hand briefly, squeezing it for luck, before falling behind.

Sam and Dean headed toward the two evil beings, wands in hand.  The Golden Trio, Dumbledore, McGonagall, and Snape followed a few yards behind, ready to snap into action when needed.

Finally Sam and Dean were only feet away from Voldemort and Lucifer, protected by the castle’s wards.

“Hey Luci,” Dean said obnoxiously, eyeing the devil.  Lucifer’s head tilted as he took in the de-aged Winchesters, realizing quickly who they were.

“Sam, Dean,” he acknowledged, surprising Voldemort next to him with his acknowledgement.  “How interesting it is to see you here.”

“We couldn’t let you come here and ruin the world, Lucifer,” Sam said, only a minor tremble in his voice for speaking to his previous torturer.

Lucifer grinned, a feral one.  “Ah, but I won’t let you stop me, Sammy dear.  My newest friend and I will rule everything.”

Dean found himself tired of the talking already.  He put his wand in his left hand and drew his gun with his right, aiming it at Lucifer. “No, Lucifer, you won’t.”

Dean pulled the trigger, bullet lodging itself in Lucifer’s chest.  Voldemort’s red eyes widened in shock, obviously having never seen a gun in action before.  Before he knew that Lucifer was actually unhurt, angel and all, Voldemort apparated away.

“Coward,” Dean commented before emptying the rest of his clip into Lucifer’s chest.  Obviously it wasn’t doing anything to harm Lucifer, but it sure did feel good to fire his gun again.

“You can’t hurt me with that, Dean,” Lucifer tutted, shaking his head in disappointment.  “I was hoping for more of a fight, truthfully.”

Sam raised his wand. “Well, let’s give you one, then.”

Spells from both Sam’s wand and Hermione’s headed toward Lucifer, the beams of light confusing the angel slightly.  His body shook as they absorbed the energy, making him falter slightly.

“What is this?” Lucifer questioned, slight worry in his voice.

Sam grinned.  “Magic.”

More spells were sent, Dean’s gun firing again, before Lucifer waved his hand and sent all three of them falling to the wayside.  He began walking forward, breaching the wards easily, shocking Dumbledore.  

“Now, I really do wish my newest friend was here to see you die, but I guess I’m just going to have to explain everything to him in great detail instead,” Lucifer said, sneer on his face.  He raised his hand in front of him, ready to strike, when a loud booming sound rippled over them all.

“Not today, Lucifer,” came the voice of Castiel, angel blade in hand and ready for battle.  Dean laughed in triumph as he looked toward Castiel, jumping to his feet and firing his gun at Lucifer more.

Sam and the trio began firing spells at Lucifer once Dean started his attack again, and Castiel soon got on board with bolts of grace toward his brother.  Lucifer was surrounded on all sides by all types of attacks, unable to fend them all off at the same time.

His body began buzzing, absorbing the magic and grace and bullets until it couldn’t take it anymore. When he finally got to his weakest, Castiel approached with his angel blade, plunging it into Lucifer’s chest and causing the angel’s eyes to burn out in death.

Lucifer’s vessel fell to the ground, the burnt ash outline of wings spreading along the grass.

An air of relief settled over the group of fighters, Hermione the first one to break her stance and run to Sam.  She hugged him tightly, grateful that they had defeated at least one foe and all survived with hardly a scratch.  Sam shared her joy, spinning her around as he hugged her back.

“Cas, perfect timing, man,” Dean said, clapping the angel on the shoulder.  Castiel gave Dean a weak smile, making the man realize how drained Castiel was.  “Hey, let’s get you some rest, yeah?”

Castiel nodded, letting Dean lead him into the castle, presumably to Dean’s rooms where Castiel could rest.  Dumbledore and Snape stayed back to take care of Lucifer’s empty vessel, knowing that they needed to get rid of it before any students could see.

Sam joined the trio as they headed back to Gryffindor tower, the adrenaline rush from the fight wearing off. At the last minute, Hermione bid goodbye to Harry and Ron, grabbing Sam’s hand and taking him to the Room.

“You’re going to leave now, aren’t you?” she asked him as soon as they were sitting in the bunker, fingers twined together.

Sam sighed, knowing that this was going to happen eventually.  “Yeah,” he replyed, nodding.  “Once Cas gets powered back up, we’ll head home.  Dean doesn’t want to stay here any longer than he has to.”

Hermione nodded sadly, eyes trained on their joined hands.  “I’ll miss you,” she admitted, so quietly that Sam nearly missed it.

He pulled her close to him, hugging her tight.  “I’ll miss you, too,” he mumbled into her hair, trying to enjoy what were some of their last moments together.

The next morning found them all gathered in Dean’s rooms, Castiel recuperated enough to get the three of them back to their world.  Harry and Ron had finally been brought in on the secret, now that the Winchesters were leaving.  They definitely grumbled about being kept out of the loop, but were both a little too excited about the Winchesters leaving.

Hermione, however, was quiet.  Castiel noticed her sadness and approached her and Sam.

“I understand that the two of you have become close since Sam has been here,” Castiel said, their looks confirming his words.  “I have created something for you…”

Castiel turned and grabbed two leather-bound journals, identical black covers looking at them. “I’ve infused these with my grace, so that the two of you may continue to communicate across universes through writing.  I hope that this will help alleviate any sadness at our parting.”

Hermione’s eyes widened as she took the journal, her hand rubbing its cover reverently.  “Thank you, Castiel,” she said sincerely, looking up at Sam.  He was just as surprised at the angel’s idea – or rather, at Dean’s suggestion.  Sam looked over at his brother who merely shrugged, not wanting to admit his moment of sappiness.

Journal in hand, Sam moved toward his brother and Castiel, preparing for the journey back home. Castiel nearly raised his hand before Hermione’s voice rang out.

“Wait,” she said, stopping Castiel’s movements.  “Can we see them, the  _real_  them, before you go?”

With a finger to Sam and Dean’s foreheads, they were back to their normal ages, bodies adjusting back to their normal ages easier than the de-aging process had been.  Dean cracked his neck, a cocky smile on his face when Harry and Ron saw how old he actually was.  Sam’s body had grown a few inches, his back-to-normal long hair falling into his face.

Hermione walked up to him and pushed his hair back, studying his features as they were now.  “Handsome as ever,” she whispered to him, making him smile.  Gently, she reached up on her tip toes to kiss his cheek, adding, “Don’t forget about me,” very softly before she sank back down on her heels.

Sam grinned, leaning over to wrap her in a hug.  “Never,” was his promise.

One kiss to the top of her head was all that was left, Castiel reaching out for each Winchester and zapping them back to reality.  The Golden Trio was left alone in the room, memories and a magic journal the only evidence of the Winchesters’ visit to their world.


End file.
